A Proper Sendoff

Jaime Moreno was not the only big-name retiree this weekend; the Chicago Fire said goodbye to American soccer legend Brian McBride and long time defender C.J. Brown. The club’s overall record was disappointing to fans, but by getting ten points in the last six matches the club has some optimism going into the offseason.

Swedish international Freddie Ljungberg was the star of the show, finishing with a goal and an assist. It was his assist that gained the attention rather than his match-winning goal. In the fortieth minute he provided a cross in the goal area that for the eightieth time Brian McBride slide into the back of the net, this time with his right foot.

McBride remained on the field long enough to watch Ljungberg slot the game’s second goal inside the right post to take a 2–0 lead, which was expanded to 4 Fire goals later in the match by Carr (67) and Husidic (90+). Maldonado notched a goal for Chivas, but their season ended as it did so often this season — on the wrong side of the ledger.